Kirkus Reviews Book Blogger Networkhttps://www.kirkusreviews.com/features/author/steve-sullivan/Posts by Steve Sullivanen-usTue, 03 Mar 2015 15:39:20 -0000Indie Fiction Spotlight on Curt Finch: 'Magpie'https://www.kirkusreviews.com/features/indie-fiction-curt-finch-magpie/In <st1:personname>Curt Finch</st1:personname>&rsquo;s debut novel, <a href="http://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/curt-finch/magpie2/"><em>Magpie</em></a>, young Ian Swansea first enters the employ of mercurial, accident-prone, award-winning journalist Arthur Magpie after saving the star reporter from a rampaging (and quite stoned) bull.https://www.kirkusreviews.com/features/indie-fiction-curt-finch-magpie/Harry Dolan's 'Very Bad Men'https://www.kirkusreviews.com/features/harry-dolans-very-bad-men/In Harry Dolan&rsquo;s bestselling thriller <a href="http://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/fiction/harry-dolan/bad-things-happen/"><em>Bad Things Happen</em></a>, David Loogan arrives in Ann Arbor, Mich., hoping to start anew after his life was derailed by an act of violence. But crime confronts him again when a friend who edits a mystery magazine is murdered.https://www.kirkusreviews.com/features/harry-dolans-very-bad-men/America’s Flea Markets in ‘Killer Stuff and Tons of Money’https://www.kirkusreviews.com/features/americas-flea-markets-killer-stuff-and-tons-money/Maureen Stanton and Curt Avery met at the University of Massachusetts in Amherst in the &rsquo;80s. She earned a degree in communication studies; he in biochemistry. Stanton now teaches creative nonfiction writing at the University of Missouri. And Avery? He&rsquo;s not a biochemist. He makes his living buying and selling antiques. It&rsquo;s his passion and an all-consuming one at that.https://www.kirkusreviews.com/features/americas-flea-markets-killer-stuff-and-tons-money/Moveon.org's Eli Pariser on privacy in the digital age https://www.kirkusreviews.com/features/moveonorgs-eli-pariser-privacy-digital-age/In his new book <em>The Filter Bubble: What the Internet is Hiding from You</em>, former MoveOn.org executive director Eli Pariser lays out in fascinating and troubling detail how websites are collecting data about users and what they&rsquo;re doing with it. It&rsquo;s all about personalization and the ability to cater to a web user&rsquo;s individual likes. But, Pariser argues, by eliminating exposure to news, information and opinions that we might not enjoy or agree with, personalization threatens to significantly narrow our understanding of the world and our democracy.https://www.kirkusreviews.com/features/moveonorgs-eli-pariser-privacy-digital-age/Nerve: 'The Brave New Science of Fear and Cool'https://www.kirkusreviews.com/features/nerve-brave-new-science-fear-cool-taylor-clark/Taylor Clark, author of <a href="http://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/non-fiction/taylor-clark/starbucked/" target="_blank"><em>Starbucked</em> </a>(2007), has long had problems with anxiety. Unhappy with the books he was finding on the subject, Clark decided to write one himself. A lively, eye-opening read, <em><a href="http://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/non-fiction/taylor-clark/nerve-science-fear-cool/" target="_blank">Nerve</a>: Poise Under Pressure, Serenity Under Stress, and the Brave New Science of Fear and Cool</em> features fascinating research on fear, anxiety and stress, as well as compelling stories from people who have faced intensely challenging situations.https://www.kirkusreviews.com/features/nerve-brave-new-science-fear-cool-taylor-clark/Kirkus Q&A: Dave Itzkoffhttps://www.kirkusreviews.com/features/kirkus-q-dave-itzkoff-cocaines-son/&ldquo;He&rsquo;s a drug addict, Davey. He&rsquo;s been addicted to cocaine almost your entire life.&rdquo; Dave Itzkoff, now a reporter on the culture desk of the <em>New York Times</em>, was only 8 years old when his mother dropped that life-altering bombshell about his dad.https://www.kirkusreviews.com/features/kirkus-q-dave-itzkoff-cocaines-son/